


11 hours, 9 minutes

by kiminseong



Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: 12 Princes Fest, 12 Princes October Fest, Fame!AU, M/M, sidepairing - jacob/sangyeon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-03 19:30:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16332092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiminseong/pseuds/kiminseong
Summary: Kevin mistakes Chanhee for Jacob and tries to jump on his back in order to surprise him. Chanhee is a famous MC that Kevin has loved for a while now. Kevin is tackled to the ground by Chanhee's security detail... Things don't look good for either of them.





	11 hours, 9 minutes

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for 12 Princes October Fic Fest! It was super fun to participate in! It was also my very first fic fest, so I hope everything turns out okay! It is also my first The Boyz fic! I hope that The B that requested the prompt believes I did the prompt justice, too! I hope everyone enjoys reading and I am sorry in advance for any mistakes! 
> 
> @tbzficfest - 12 Princes Fest twitter handle

_ “They don’t have any!”  _ Jacob whined from the aisle just behind Kevin. Although the shelves were too tall to see Jacob, he could tell his best friend’s voice from anywhere. Kevin could hear Sangyeon, Jacob’s crush, snickering at Jacob behind him, too. The couple was cute; they were good for each other. There was something about how well they worked together that made Kevin happy, just for the both of them. He knows they are deserving of each other. 

Kevin continued to pick up a bag of Doritos, not sure if the potato chips were all he wanted. Moving to isle with his friends in it, he spoke up, “You guys already making plans to leave me?” 

Jacob gigged a little before speaking up, “Yeah, are you coming with?” 

Kevin shook his head, “I am gonna grab a few more things, I’ll catch up with you guys.”

“You sure you don’t want us to wait?” Sangyeon asked just to be sure. Kevin knew that he wanted to be alone with Jacob for any period of time, though. 

“You love birds are plenty capable of getting your special cereal without me,” Kevin teased, earning him a laugh from Sangyeon and Jacob sticking his tongue out jokingly. Laughing, the couple walked out the store as Kevin made his way to the meals. He grabbed a couple packs of his favorite cup ramen from the shelf. He didn’t have a basket or cart, so instead, he was trying to awkwardly balance the things in his hand. Although he hadn’t dropped anything yet, he still wanted a drink. He decided to just grab one at the counter. 

While checking his things out, drink included, his phone  _ pinged.  _ quickly, he grabbed the bags the cashier handed him and carried them in his left hand as he left, the little bell on the door ringing. Using his now free hand, he pulled his phone from his sweatshirt pocket and checked his phone. 

Soompi had posted a new news article about a drama coming out soon. Clicking on the article, he found out that it was going to be the debut of the lead actor. Reading on, the small text revealed to him that the new actor was none other than  _ Choi Chanhee _ , a famous host from Kevin’s  _ favorite  _ Korean reality show. Not only was he funny, smart, and personable, but he was  _ incredibly cute.  _ Without realizing, Kevin was smiling at the article. 

He was more than aware that Chanhee’s early career was rough. He started hosting around the age of eighteen, replacing an old host who decided to retire. He received so much backlash due to the popularity of the past host. While many only offered him positive feedback, Kevin made twitter, tumblr, any account he could dedicated to Chanhee. He will never forget the day Chanhee replied to one of his tweets, thanking him for being so kind:  _ it was probably the most pivotal point in Kevin’s life,  _ if you ask him. 

Excited to Jacob, who was also an avid fan of Chanhee’s (thought not crushing him), he looks up from his phone and looks around for his friends. Finally finding him, turned around walking toward another convenience store, Kevin started to run toward him, wanting to surprise him. It was the first time for a while that Kevin successfully mounted his friend’s back. It was his  _ first time  _ to be pummeled to the ground by two grown men. 

“I’m sorry!” Kevin yells, his voice cracking. A sudden pain rushed through his arm and he nearly forgot what his fingers were supposed to feel like. The men pulled him up, but Kevin was in between tears and laughter because of what he  _ actually just did.  _ He knew that the men were asking why he’d be laughing at something like this, and Kevin wishes he could stop. With a final tug on Kevin’s arm, they let him go, but he doesn’t dare move. Wincing, he looks down at his wrist shaking it a little,  but trying to keep his smile plastered on his face. 

_ “Thanks,”  _ he hears from a boy just behind the boy. Kevin knew he heard talking, but he wasn’t sure  _ what  _ was being said. A boy stepped between the two bodyguards. His frame was extremely small, nearly folding in on himself. His head was decorated with a black beret, perfectly matching the one that Jacob had worn out, covering platinum blond hair. He was wearing a white sweater with a tan-ish trench coat that he was  _ swimming  _ in. 

“ _ Choi Chanhee? _ ” Kevin couldn’t help the awe in his voice.  

“Yes?” The man looked at him, smiling, but the features of his face were pulled into

worried expression. “Are you alright?” 

Kevin nodded his head slowly with uncertainty. He  _ wasn’t _ alright _.  _ He was a lot. He was nervous and tired and confused and extremely happy and in so much pain all in one go, but Kevin only nodded. His tongue had failed him and so had his head. Whatever knot inside his mouth at formed wouldn’t come undone. He was wordless, but had so many things to say just sitting on the edge of his tongue. 

When one of his attempted murderers touched his arm, he remembered the pain that 

permeated his wrist. “Are you sure?” Chanhee asked after watching the boy wince again. “Your wrist doesn’t look too good…” Chanhee moved closer, getting a better look. Kevin held his arm out for the man without thinking, like when a nurse asks to see a cut. 

Kevin could hear his own heartbeat. His ears grew a little red at the realization, but he could pass that off as being from the cold. What he couldn’t pass off was that his heart was trying to beat out his chest with every movement Chanhee made. “Ah, it is purple!” Chanhee exclaimed, worried. His voice was so  _ pretty.  _ Kevin was practically melting despite the pain in his wrist and the icy wind hitting his skin. 

Chanhee placed one of his hands on Kevin’s arm, above his wrist. It didn’t hurt when he did this, it actually felt good because of the temperature of Chanhee’s hands compared to his arm, but he knew his arm was on fire because of the internal body cells coming to the surface or whatever scientific things happen when you break your wrist, but Chanhee’s hands were  _ freezing  _ above Kevin’s arm. 

Seemingly without thinking, Chanhee placed his other hand in Kevin’s hand, his delicate fingers pressing against him in a way that Kevin didn’t think he could handle.  _ That was it, his life was over. He was about to have a  _ heart attack  _ because of this boy.  _ He didn’t mean to pull away, but Chanhee’s hands were so cold, especially against his hand, which was in some pain because of his wrist. Chanhee dropped his hands, and Kevin let out a breath that he didn’t know he was holding. 

Finding words, Kevin spoke again, more than just Chanhee’s name. “I am fine,” he tried convincing him, “ I am so sorry, again. I can’t believe I did that… I thought you were my friend. He is a big fan of you, and he was wearing the same hat and he is short and small, and I would really never mean to...I am—” Kevin was cut off by Chanhee’s sudden smile, which he didn’t understand.  _ Why was he smiling now? _

As if he could read Kevin’s mind, Chanhee spoke, “It is okay! I am  _ fine _ !” he tried reassuring Kevin, but it wasn’t going to work. Kevin was beyond embarrassed at this point. There wasn’t much that Chanhee, nor anyone else, could do or say that would make him feel better, yet Chanhee continued. “Plus, it makes for a funny story!” Chanhee beamed, embarrassing Kevin further. “Granted the experience was  _ terrifying _ , the only one hurt here is you, so I am worried!” That was another thing Kevin loved about this boy— his smile. 

If he was to be completely honest, Kevin couldn’t believe everything that had just happened to him. He only met to surprise his best friend with some good news, but, instead, he jumped on the back of a celebrity. He was undoubtedly about to end up in jail or worse, not that he minded, since he had just assaulted the man he was pretty sure was the love of his life. Standing there, staring at Chanhee, he blinked a couple of times, hoping he’d wake up from whatever kind of twisted dream he was in. Bringing his good hand up to his face, he slapped himself, not hard enough to leave a mark but hard enough to leave a slight stinging sensation. 

_ “What the heck?!”  _ Chanhee and the two men were still there, Kevin’s wrist still hurt. Maybe if he had used his right hand… “I am sorry,” Kevin apologized to him for what was probably the hundredth time. “I swear I’m not losing it, I just… I’m a really big fan of yours and it is so nice to meet you, but I am so sorry it has to be like this a—”

Chanhee cut him off again, “It is okay! I understand, even if they don’t, Chanhee looked

toward the two men who were _definitely_ listening in on the conversation. “Being honest, I would have been angry, but I feel like these guys hold just enough anger that I don’t have to be!” Kevin didn’t know how someone this forgiving could exist, even Jacob would have gotten angry if Kevin had tackled him _(then again, Sangyeon probably wouldn’t have tackled Kevin to the ground afterward, so Jacob would have nothing to feel bad about)_. Kevin’s freshly sprained wrist might have a lot to do with why Chanhee is being so nice, too. 

“We should really get your arm looked at,” Chanhee confesses, looking over at the guards, his eyes narrowing when they look as if they want to interject. Chanhee didn’t look threatening, but the way he morphed his facial features together got the point across appropriately. “It  _ is  _ my fault,” Chanhee tried blaming himself, as if that made any sense. 

“This  _ really,  _ in  _ no way,  _ is your fault…” Kevin’s wrist was in a lot of pain now, so he raised it to his stomach, supporting it with his other hand. “I literally jumped on your back… Oh, god,” realization was slowly hitting Kevin, “Just take me to jail now,” Kevin didn’t mean to let the words out, but he directed his words toward one of the two men that were beside Chanhee now. 

Chanhee looked back at them in warning, “Don’t you dare,” he spoke carefully, testing them. They didn’t even flinch. “We are taking you to the hospital to get that looked at. Are you busy today?” The way he asked made Kevin feel like he didn’t have any other option than to  _ not  _ be busy. He  _ wasn’t,  _ which was probably good. He actually had no plans (not that he ever did). 

“No…” Kevin nearly mouthed, nervous. 

“Good. I am worried about your health, please understand… So can I  _ please _ take you to the hospital to get this looked at? It won’t take much time…” he assured.  _ How was he guaranteeing a quick-trip to the hospital?  _ Kevin was _ pretty sure  _ his wrist was  _ broken.  _

“Um...okay?” Kevin was, yet again, at a loss for words.  _ How could anyone think of what to say? A celebrity was taking him to the hospital because of something stupid  _ he _ did.  _ He couldn’t wrap his head around the whole thing. “You don’t have to, though,” Kevin tried to ease the whole thing. He didn’t want to blow anything out of proportion, especially for the sake of Chanhee. “I could take myself… Besides, my friends are probably waiting for me…” Kevin paused. He wasn’t sure what else to say. Maybe he wasn’t busy today, but Chanhee was nearly guaranteed to have  _ some  _ sort of schedule. If there was anything the South Korean entertainment industry was good at doing, it was overworking those apart of it. 

“Do you know where your friends are?” Chanhee asked, disregarding the purpose of everything Kevin had just said. “Can you contact them?” 

“I can try calling, Kevin pulled his phone out of his pocket. He wasn’t sure what else to do, at this point. 

“Okay!” Chanhee cheered while Kevin got ready to dial Jacob. 

“Jacob?” Kevin asked, waiting for him to respond.

“Yes?” Jacob was on the other end. 

“Could you and Sangyeon-hyung meet me at the hospital?”

Kevin could hear the worry in Jacob’s voice when he responded; he could almost see the face the boy was probably making, “What for? Are you okay?” 

“I am fine,” Kevin assured, “It is a long story, though…” 

 

✈️

 

It didn’t take long before the two were in a hospital room together, the two men outside the door. They were waiting for not only a doctor, but for Jacob and Sangyeon who Kevin would have to relay his odd story to when they finally got here. For now, Kevin was sitting in a celebrity-rented hospital room with  _ Choi Chanhee himself  _ next to him. Kevin knew that he didn’t need to be in a hospital bed. If anything, he only needed a cast on his wrist and maybe something to eat now that it was nearly lunchtime. More than anything, Kevin wanted to be out of this drab hospital. The  _ last  _ thing he needed was more room do make something bigger out of this mess. 

“Does it still hurt a lot?” Chanhee asked tentatively, while Kevin was scrolling through his twitter feed. To say the least, the whole experience had been extremely awkward. They weren’t talking much, but at least Chanhee knew his name now. And thanks to the information needed to check in, he also knew Kevin’s age, height, weight, and birthplace.  _ Stupid Canada.  _

Kevin turned his head toward Chanhee. He was much more attractive in real life than he was on TV, which was saying a lot since he was absolutely stunning in both. His mind sputtered, not sure of what to say next, “Um, yeah?” he answered like he was uncertain despite the  _ definite  _ pain he felt course through his wrist. 

“Is there anything I can do for now?” Chanhee asks. 

Kevin just shakes his head. He really didn’t know why Chanhee was being so nice to him. He didn’t even know Kevin. Actually, for all _he_ _knew_ , Kevin could be some weirdo. Maybe Chanhee is too nice for his own good. 

“Are you absolutely sure?” Chanhee asks, his gaze drifting toward the TV that has been playing some channel Kevin hadn’t heard of. “Are you watching this?” Chanhee asked.

Kevin shook his head again, “Do you want the remote?” it was Kevin’s turn to speak up in their light back and forth. He moved to pick it up, but, in doing this, his phone slipped off of his lap where he had laid it and slipped off the edge of the bed. Neither of them realized what was happening fast enough to catch it. A shattering noise permeated the small room, and shards of glass and plastic spread across the floor like a spilled cup of water. They didn’t reach far, and their wasn’t much, but Kevin’s phone was broken nonetheless. 

Chanhee merely stared wide-eyed at the floor while Kevin looked at him. He was  _ shocked  _ to say the least, and, in everything that just happened, he was still trying to pass Chanhee the remote. “I am so sorry,” Chanhee bit his bottom lip, his eyes meeting Kevin’s. Chanhee  _ really was  _ beautiful. There wasn’t much to say about Kevin, in his opinion, but Chanhee was absolutely adorable and so stunning at the same time. It was enough to made Kevin’s heart skip a beat and let his brain forget his shattered phone. 

“You…” Kevin tried speaking, but he was tongue tied, “You don’t have to be…” he managed, finally. Kevin hated being tongue tied. It was unusual, foreign to him.He didn’t want to seem awkward, not when meeting Chanhee was the opportunity of a lifetime. 

Chanhee frowned, carefully standing up, “I am going to get some help to cl—” 

_ “No!”  _ Kevin interjected, forgetting who he was talking to. Chanhee was taken aback; surely the last thing he expected was for Kevin to have  _ shouted at him _ . “Sorry,” Kevin’s voice was quiet again, “I mean… I mean I am sorry, but… I can clean it, no problem,” he tried making up. Kevin didn’t know what else to say, all he knew was that he  _ did not  _ want one of those men to come in and  _ judge him  _ even more than they already have. 

“No, no, Kevin, it is okay!” Chanhee beamed, “I can just get help, besides yo—” 

_ “I just wanted to spend some more time with you!”  _ there were little to no space between Kevin’s words. He had managed the whole sentence in one breath, and he regretted the sentence only a second afterward.  _ Why did he just say that? _

The  _ last  _ thing Kevin expected was for a smiling Chanhee to turn confused and bright red. Well, the confused part, he understood but  _ blushing?  _ Kevin had to be losing it. But he wasn’t. “What?” Chanhee stammered, as if Kevin hadn’t made a fool of himself clearly enough. 

Kevin wasn’t even sure what to say. If he kept going, Chanhee was really going to think he was a freak, but he if stopped, he’d make an even bigger fool of himself explaining that he lied  _ just  _ so those men didn’t have to come into his room and judge him  _ even more  _ now. “You are joking, right?” Chanhee was still standing as if he was going to walk toward the door, maybe faster now. Kevin could hear a crunch underneath his foot as he shifted his weight, waiting for an answer. 

“I…” Kevin has  _ never  _ been this nervous  _ in his life.  _

“You…?” 

“I did mean it… I am a really big fan,” Kevin could feel himself start to ramble in hopes of getting out of this situation. “I have loved watching you since you started, and there was this one time when you replied to one of my tweets, and I literally thought that I was going to die beca-” 

“Okay, okay!” Chanhee sputtered, his arms waving, indicating to Kevin that it was time to stop. 

“You know,” Kevin began without thinking, “There is a lot of interjecting in this relationship.”  _ Who did Kevin think he was talking to, Jacob?  _ Chanhee grew surprised, but as he stood there for a moment longer, he broke into a smile. His body fell, what tension it had built up was released and he was alone, with Kevin, walking  _ away  _ from the door. 

“I know,” Chanhee crouched down to the floor, picking up Kevin’s phone, “But you shouldn’t surprise me like that!” Chanhee exclaimed, looking at the damage done to his phone. It wouldn’t have been bad if glass hadn’t fallen out of it, but that is what Kevin gets for taking the screen protector off  _ every single time.  _

Kevin could see, from where he was sitting, that the page he had left on his phone was left open, probably permanently.  _ And the page just had to be a fan account of Chanhee, didn’t it?  _ Chanhee kept hold of the phone, seemingly ignoring what was pulled up on it, but something about it must have caught his eye. His nimble finger poked at one of the cracks, seeing if it would shatter anymore. No, it was fine. “Is this...a fan account...for me?” Chanhee managed with shock in his voice. He was smiling, looking at the icon Kevin was using as well as his header, description, pinned tweet,  _ everything.  _ Kevin’s face was akin to a cherry, and that was  _ so  _ untypical for him that it scared him. 

Kevin only nodded, looking down at his hospital blanket. It was bunched up on his lap, and he could still see the outline of his arms from underneath the thin material.  _ If they had to be mass-produced by the hundreds, why wouldn’t the material be thin?  _

“This is cute, Kevin…” Chanhee interrupted Kevin’s mindless thinking. He was tapping buttons on the screen (Kevin could see him from his peripheral). Nothing was working, so Chanhee continued to look at the shattered twitter page. “You are @chanheelovebot? For real?” Chanhee was smiling, trying to meet Kevin’s eyes now. 

“Yes,” Kevin said aloud yet meekly. “I wasn’t lying when I said I was a fan…”

“No, no, I believed you, but I didn’t think you were  _ the fan _ !” Chanhee said like it was supposed to make any more than no sense. 

“What?” Kevin  _ needed  _ clarification after that one. 

“You left a really nice comment once! And I replied to it, right?” Kevin nodded, and Chanhee kept talking, “It was so sweet… I was going through a really tough time and you made me realize that there really were people out there who wanted to see me succeed even if the negativity was spread faster, more effectively. You actually helped to show me how differently I should start to view lots of the backlash I receive…”

Kevin  _ did  _ say something like that...more like  _ exactly  _ that. “You remember?”

“ _ Of course!  _ And I just told you why!” Chanhee was getting more and more excited, eventually standing up after he grew wobbly trying to squat awkwardly on the floor. He was happy, his smile wider and brighter than Kevin could  _ ever  _ recall seeing it. If it were possible to fall in love with someone you had just met, Kevin thinks he really has. He had always believed he loved Chanhee, but he had never really thought about  _ loving  _ Chanhee. It was always extremely far-fetched. It was still that way, even now, but Kevin was incredibly happy nonetheless. 

Chanhee was face-to-face with Kevin now. Eye-to-eye, Chanhee suddenly stopped, his expression was searching, searching for something on Kevin, maybe. Kevin knew he was searching, too, searching for something to stop his heart from beating out of his chest from the way Chanhee was looking at him. Kevin felt useless, his limbs locked under two blankets and the odd material of the bed squeaking when he moved too much, but Chanhee didn’t sit back down. He looked down to Kevin’s wrist, where it laid limply on his lap, hidden underneath blankets. Kevin couldn’t tell what he was thinking, and Chanhee probably didn’t know what he was, but whatever was happening was too good to be true. 

He was close to Kevin now, and Kevin wasn’t sure when he got that close, but what he could feel of his body had turned to jelly. He was completely pliant as a result of being within  _ this  _ proximity of Chanhee. He could almost feel the other’s breath on his skin, and everything was happening faster than his mind allowed. 

“ _ We are here!”  _ Kevin could tell the voice from anywhere. Jacob and Sangyeon walked through the door, a bodyguard holding it open for the two. They walked into the room, their steps quick. The world seemed to return to normal, much to Kevin’s dismay. 

Chanhee’s head pulled away, and he seemed to understand what was happening now. “You

just made me really happy…” he said in a whisper, shyly. Kevin pinched his lips together to keep from  _ crying  _ he was so happy. Chanhee looked like he needed to do the same, but they still turned to the two boys who had just entered. 

“Nice to meet you!” Chanhee sang, walking over to the two boys. At some point, Kevin’s phone was returned to his lap, still useless. Jacob reached out a hand in greeting, seemingly forgetting where he was, then bowed upon realization. Sangyeon followed suit, skipping the attempted handshake. 

“Is Kevin alright?” Sangyeon asked as Jacob walked straight to the boy. 

“Yes,” Chanhee looked back at Kevin, then to Sangyeon again, “I think he is fine.”

Jacob was nearly to Kevin when he stepped on the tiny shards of glass on the floor. “Maybe we should get someone in here to clean this…” Kevin looked to Chanhee. Chanhee nodded and headed for the door, talking to one of the men that were more than likely his managers, not bodyguards. 

“What happened?” Jacob asked, picking up one of the tiny shards.

Kevin held up his phone, “I think it slipped and hit against the corner of that table…”

“Ouch,” Jacob grimaced, “That sucks.” 

“Yeah…” There was a pause where neither of them spoke, just looked at the damage done. When one of the managers walked in, though, Jacob moved to the other side of the bed where he could talk freely to Kevin. Chanhee was still outside and Sangyeon was moved to sit in a chair at the end of the bed, completely out of the way. Kevin  _ did  _ wish he were closer to Sangyeon, but he only met him a couple months ago after he came to South Korea to visit Jacob again. 

Jacob picked up the phone and turned it on, only to see that it wouldn’t leave the page Kevin was on. “So,” he spoke while still messing with the phone, “How was meeting  _ Choi Chanhee _ ?” he looked up at Kevin, smiling. 

“ _ Amazing!” _ Kevin beamed, his heart skipping a beat thinking back to the encounter they had just had. He shook his head, wanting to say more but he was at a complete loss for words. “Just wait until I tell you  _ how  _ I met him.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I’ll tell you later.”

 

✈️

 

_ “Four to six weeks?”  _ Kevin sat lonely in the hospital room, only the comfort of a doctor with him now. Because they weren’t relatives, no one else was technically allowed in his room, even if he only broke his wrist. Much to his dismay, the doctor informed him that he  _ did indeed  _ break his wrist or his “distal radius.” He was just thankful that he wasn’t being heavily questioned as to  _ how  _ he broke it. He did say that he fell, which wasn’t  _ wrong,  _ just not right. 

“Yes, four to six weeks. Now that you have a cast, you are free to go. I would go on further 

about recommendations for after the treatment, but, from what I understand it is important for you to know that air travel is likely unsafe for the first two weeks.” Kevin nodded as the doctor spoke, pretending he wasn’t panicking because he  _ knows  _ he has a flight  _ already booked  _ for a flight out of  Korea  _ next week. Great.  _

The doctor stood, removing several papers from a clipboard along with a pen and handing them to Kevin, “If you fill this out, you can turn it into the nurse at reception, and you should be free to go afterwards.” The man smiled, leaving the room.

Kevin sat alone for a moment, nothing but the green cast around his wrist and the papers in his good hand there with him. But the door pushed open, like Kevin was truly counting on, and everyone filed into the room, Chanhee first, then Jacob, then Sangyeon. He assumed the managers were going to stay outside again. 

“Is everything okay?” Chanhee approached him, his hands resting on the bed as he took a seat next to Kevin. He was sitting up straight and his hands were awfully close to Kevin’s own, but still, his wrist was immobile, especially now. 

Kevin nodded, “Yeah… I can’t fly for two weeks, which is going to be a problem, but other than that, everything is fine.” Chanhee nodded while his spoke, his eyes sparkling with an interest Kevin began to pick up on more and more. The way he  _ glowed  _ when looking at Kevin made him teem with a sort of hope that couldn’t easily be explained. It was a feeling he wasn’t sure he had ever experienced before. It was like something in his life was finally  _ bigger  _ than it had ever been. 

“That’s good,” Chanhee admitted. 

“Wait, wait,” Jacob announced, intruding on the conversation in only a way that Jacob could. “You have to be out of here next week, though,” he looked worried. Kevin knew this was going to be something they would have to talk about, so he figured he would get it over with sooner rather than later. 

Kevin let out a hum of assurance, “Mhm, I am just going to have to find a place to stay, I guess.” Chanhee looked at them, confused. Jacob bit his lip, thinking. Kevin had come to South Korea to visit Jacob and Sangyeon, but the couple planned on leaving next week to meet Jacob’s family in Canada. Because of this, Kevin was going to just leave with them since school started back up around the time. This next week was also the only time Sangyeon’s work schedule allowed him to be away for a while, and Jacob has been eager to have Sangyeon meet his parents for  _ a while  _ now. 

Sangyeon spoke up, though, which Kevin was thankful for, “I don’t have any problem with him staying at my place,” he explained. “I trust Kevin, and I trust that he will return the keys back to me when I need them.” 

Kevin smiled, nodding, “Thank you, Sangyeon-hyung!” he exclaimed. The  _ last thing  _ Kevin wanted was to postpone Sangyeon meeting Jacob’s parents, so he truly was thankful for the offer. 

In the midst of the conversation, Chanhee interrupted, concern drawn across his face, “You are going to be all alone...with a broken wrist?”  _ Was he really that worried about Kevin being alone with his wrist hurt?  _

“It is okay,” Kevin thought for a minute, “If I need anything, I will be sure to get help. Right now, I should worry about telling my family and my school that I won’t be back until a week later…” he shook his head, still in disbelief of the whole situation. 

Jacob pulled out his phone, handing it to Kevin, “Here, if you want to call your parents… We can all wait outside again while you get your papers finished.”

“Thank you,” Kevin said as the two left, yet Chanhee stayed. 

He stood there awkwardly for a minute, teeth biting down on his bottom lip. Kevin looked toward him as if to urge him to speak. “Um… Are there any papers on the payment? I will need to look at them, since I am paying…” he sounded nervous and a little uncertain of what he was saying. 

“Um, yeah, I think there are…” Kevin flipped through the papers in his hands, one of them being the one Chanhee needed. He handed it to him, still worried because of Chanhee’s wavering expression. “Are you okay?” 

“Huh? Yes? Yes. I am fine,” his eyes darted across Kevin’s face when he spoke, like he was looking for something more to say, something more to make sense of, but Kevin understood his words clearly, it was his actions that were worrisome. 

“Are you sure?” 

There was silence for a moment while Chanhee fumbled with the pen Kevin handed him. Removing the cap, ink leaked onto his thumb and forefinger. All the boy did was shake his head at the mess before coming closer to Kevin than he had ever been. Lifting Kevin’s good hand, he scribbled something down on it in the pen. A series of numbers were written across Kevin’s hand. He was really sitting in a hospital bed with a  _ celebrity’s phone number  _ written on him. “Just in case you need anything while you are here…” he tried to explain like that made anything that just happened normal. 

“You should probably fill out those papers now…” 

“Yeah,” Kevin nodded.

✈️

 

It was eight days  _ (yes he was counting)  _ since Kevin had met Chanhee. It was  _ supposed  _ to be the last day of his trip to South Korea, but  _ because he met Chanhee,  _ he was going to be stuck here for another seven or so. He couldn’t say he minded. He liked Korea, for sure, but homesickness was easy to feel, especially with a plaster cast weighing your energy down. 

He wasn’t mad that he had broken his wrist or that he was forced to wear this cast for weeks, but he was  _ sad  _ that he wouldn’t get to go home when he planned. He wasn’t going to be with people he knows or close friends. The cast was making it harder to do simple things like cook and clean and read and play piano. But he wasn’t mad.

Kevin stood at the airport terminal, waving to Jacob and Sangyeon, who he had already given his best wishes to. As their frames disappeared from view, Kevin grew hyper aware of how  _ literally  _ alone he was. He pushed his body toward the exit, away from where planes would soon depart and pulled out his phone, which was now fixed (another thanks to Chanhee). 

He already had a taxi of sorts waiting for him, so it didn’t take him anytime to leave the airport, which he was thankful for since one: he couldn’t drive and two: he wanted the comfort of a familiar place while he was alone. 

Finally sitting in the taxi as it drove the many roads of Seoul, South Korea, Kevin fished in his pocket for his phone that he had  _ just  _ put back. In the midst of searching, a crumpled up piece of paper was pulled out of his pocket and unfolded. On it, was a series of numbers, matching those that had been on his hand eight days ago before he showered. 

He held the note to his phone, the paper tempting, but shoved the slip back into his pocket.  _ It was probably better for the both of them if Kevin  _ didn’t  _ call.  _ He spent the rest of the ride on his phone, using far too much mobile data than he should have been, but this is what he gets for being cheap and stopping unlimited. 

✈️

 

The feeling of being in Sangyeon’s home without him nor Jacob was eerie and lonely, being honest. Kevin had never had trouble being by himself, but there was something about being by himself in a country he hadn’t lived in his whole life that was strange. He wished he could fairly say that he was alone, though, because he wasn’t, he was just ignoring the fact that a boy had given him his phone number. He was ignoring the fact that a  _ celebrity  _ had given him his phone number. He was ignoring the fact that  _ Choi Chanhee  _ had given him his phone number. 

Fishing the small piece of paper out of his pocket once again, he wondered why Jacob and Sangyeon had to book a flight at nine o’clock at night. The sun had completely set, and stars dotted the sky. It wasn’t cloudy, but living in a big city never failed to hide the stars. He wished he could stargaze like he once had on his rooftop when he was younger. Even after he moved, he’d had a balcony that showed him everything the sky held. 

He set the paper and his phone down at the small table that was in the kitchen. Sangyeon’s apartment was small, to say the least. It didn’t house many rooms, just the necessities. He and Jacob shared a room, and Kevin got to stay on the couch, which wasn’t bad since it folded out to a bed. In fact, he had grown to like the way it creaked beneath his weight. The only real downside to it was shoving it back in the couch in the mornings when he  _ already  _ didn’t want to wake up. 

Kevin hadn’t been into Sangyeon’s room much, and he didn’t plan to, but it was tempting. He didn’t really know why the idea of going in there tempted him, either. It wasn’t like him or Jacob had anything to hide. They were relatively open people, really. They even offered for him to stay in there, but something about that was  _ too  _ weird for Kevin. 

There was no dining room, but the small kitchen had  _ just  _ enough room to accomodate a four person dining table. It also held the “utilities closet” which was larger than one might think. When you opened it up, there were a few shelves that held things that wouldn’t fit anywhere in the house. There were some boxes on the floor, things Sangyeon or Jacob never found enough room for while unpacking. 

The bathroom was what one would expect, small, a bath and a shower in one. It wasn’t connected to the bedroom, which Kevin was thankful of. In all, the house was nice, but not made for three people, for sure. One, yes, two, works, three, not really. And despite the size of the dining room table, four would be  _ completely  _ pushing it. 

Sitting at the small table, Kevin placed his phone next to the sprawled out piece of paper, and for some reason, he couldn’t commit. Standing, he left the piece of paper on the table and picked his phone up, walking to the living room. The TV was left on for no apparent reason. Some drama played in the background while Kevin fixed the lumpy sheets on the already-pulled-out bed. Jacob decided that him and Sangyeon would pull it out for Kevin so he didn’t have to worry about getting himself. The previous nights, he had been struggling to open it due to his dominant hand being useless. 

He sat on the “bed,” the ever familiar squeak of the springs sounding as he got on. It didn’t take long for him to get into his usual, comfortable position. He got his phone out and stared at it, scrolling through new news articles and twitter and even news articles  _ on  _ twitter. 

 

12:56 A.M. No way. Kevin’s eyes  _ burned  _ from staring at his phone for this long, even on its lowest brightness setting. It was impossible for him to go to sleep like this, he was convinced. He didn’t know what was doing it to him, either, but he thought it had something to do with how  _ absolutely uncomfortable  _ he felt in a home he couldn’t call his own while alone. Biting his lip, he stood, making his way toward the kitchen, his phone flashlight stopping him from running into anything. 

There, on the table, he found the same uncrumpled piece of paper, a phone number written across it that was completely tangible yet felt as if it were anything but. He pressed each number into his phone, carefully, weighing his alternatives. Truly, he couldn’t think of any. 

The other end rang.

_ Once.  _

_ Twice.  _

_ A third time. _

_ A fourth.  _

“Hello?” a tired, unsure voice came from the other end. 

“Why are you picking up the phone to strangers at one in the morning?” Kevin joked, trying not to sound as  _ exhausted  _ as he felt. It was strange, he knew, that he couldn’t fall asleep. He was on the brink of  _ losing it,  _ though. 

“Who is this…?” Chanhee asked him, confused on the other line. 

“Kevin… Kevin Moon?” he said like he wasn’t sure of his own name. 

The voice on the other line suddenly came out joyful, seemingly less tired already upon hearing his name, “Kevin! Of course! Why didn’t you call me earlier?” 

“I thought… I thought you’d be busy, and I shouldn’t bother you? You are kind of...kind of a big wig...a celebrity?” he was too tired to make small talk right now, even if there was nothing he wanted to do more than talk to Chanhee for the rest of his life. 

“No, no. I gave you my number because I  _ wanted  _ you to call me. I have been waiting…” Kevin could hear the slight pout in his voice. _ How was anyone this cute this early in the morning?  _ There was a brief moment of silence before Chanhee yawned, then spoke up again, “Why are you calling so late?” 

“Actually, it is just  _ really early, _ ” Kevin corrected. 

“That wasn’t my point,” Chanhee giggled. 

_ Nope, Kevin’s heart can’t do it.  _ “I am lonely.” 

Kevin couldn’t hear anything on the other line for a moment, then Chanhee’s voice came across, “Where are you?” 

“Sangyeon-hyung’s apartment, but him and Jacob left for Canada recently, so no one is here except for me. I’m not like...scared,” Kevin started to ramble, but stopped himself before it turned into babbling from exhaustion. 

“Can you text me the address?” Chanhee asked like it was  _ normal  _ to ask that from someone.

“Um, yeah, I guess?” 

✈️

 

Kevin  _ did  _ expect it when Chanhee showed up at his door, but he  _ didn’t expect  _ the way Chanhee  _ looked  _ when he showed up. Hair disheveled, he was holding it together with a large bucket hat. A black hoodie covered him from head to toe and blue and grey pajama pants peeked from below the sweatshirt. He was wearing a mask across his face, which was common in Korea, Kevin knew. He didn’t mind it at all, but it was extremely strange to have a celebrity look so  _ casual  _ in his doorway (which wasn’t even  _ his  _ doorway). 

“Are you alright?” Kevin asked without thinking.  _ Wow, that made sense…  _ “Are you alone?” he tried to follow himself up. Admittedly, it was strange to see him without the assistance of his managers or anyone else. The last thing Kevin wanted for Chanhee was a dating scandal, or any scandal for that matter, but he  _ really  _ didn’t want to be the one involved in the scandal, either. 

Kevin allowed the boy in. They didn’t walk far since the living room was  _ right there.  _ Pulling his mask down, he spoke up, “Yeah, I snuck out of my place. I was careful, though, no worries,” he clarified upon seeing Kevin’s worry. 

“You didn’t have to do this for me,” Kevin explained halfheartedly. He didn’t know why he was saying this. He  _ wanted this.  _ “I would have been fine…” Chanhee was removing his shoes as Kevin spoke. He assesed the area, realizing the pull-out-bed on the couch was  _ most likely  _ where Kevin was stuck sleeping. 

“I haven’t been able to sleep, either, Kevin,” Chanhee smiled, sitting on the creaky bed. It seemed to make less noise underneath Chanhee than it did for Kevin. Nonetheless, he took a seat next to Chanhee on the bed, laying down a little. Chanhee remained in a sitting position and guided Kevin’s head onto his lap. For sure, this was one of the strangest things Kevin had ever done with a person. “Is this okay?” Chanhee asked, his hand finding its way to Kevin’s hair. 

“This is perfect,” Kevin mumbled, nearly asleep already upon the feeling of Chanhee’s hand in his hair. He let his eyelids take control and flutter shut, but he wondered if this sudden change was making the boy above him feel awkward. 

They stayed like this for a while before Kevin grew aware of the situation again. Looking up, he noticed that Chanhee’s head was tipped forward and his eyes were closed. Thinking about it, his hand had set itself to an almost robotic place on his head, not changing where he was playing with Kevin’s hair. 

“Are you asleep?” Kevin whispered. 

Chanhee’s lips pulled themselves into a weak smile, “I will be soon if you stop talking.” 

Kevin moved his head from Chanhee’s lap, “Here,” he moved a little and gave up one of his pillows to the boy, “Lay down so your neck won’t hurt in the morning. Chanhee did as instructed, and it didn’t take either boy very long until they were both asleep. 

 

✈️

 

_ BRINGG! BRINGG! BRINGG! _

A ringing noise woke the two up at the same time. It was coming from the side of the bed. Chanhee was receiving a call, Kevin guessed. Picking up the phone, Chanhee began speaking, “Hello?” Kevin couldn’t hear or understand the voice on the other end. 

“I am getting breakfast,” he lied to whoever was on the other end. 

“I will be fine, yes,” a pause followed. “No,” there was a longer pause. “Okay.” Chanhee put his phone down and looked to Kevin, shaking his head. “I have two free days, my manager said,” he was smiling, but he looked tired. 

“Did you sleep well,” Kevin asked, checking his own phone. The battery was unbelievably low. He left the charger in the kitchen last night. 

Chanhee sat up straight, rubbing his eyes, “Yeah,” he yawned. Standing up, he looked around, “Where is the bathroom?” 

“Here, I’ll show you,” he sat up, walking lamely down a hallway. Pointing to the end of the hall, he instructed, “Last door on the right.” 

“Thank you,” Chanhee began walking. 

  
“I am going to be in the kitchen, first door on the right when you are walking back!” Kevin explained, making his way lazily to the kitchen. There, he located his charger and plugged his phone into the other end. Noticing the scrap of paper still on the table, he folded it and set it on the counter underneath a cereal box. Kevin was starting to pull out another box of cereal when Chanhee walked in. It didn’t take him long, not that Kevin was going to say anything if it did. 

“Are we eating?” Chanhee looked interested. If there was anything Kevin knew from years of watching Chanhee, it was that he  _ loved  _ food. Kevin nodded, pulling at the cereal box again. 

“What do you want?” he asked politely, getting a bowl down. Chanhee looked at the wide array of cereals, a little confused. Kevin shook his head. He had never understood Jacob’s love for cereal, but he never thought it was going to give him second-hand embarrassed in the future. 

“You like cereal?” Chanhee asked. 

“It is okay, but Jacob  _ loves  _ cereal,” he put extra emphasis on love. 

“I see… Don’t you have any  _ real  _ food?” Chanhee joked, opening the fridge. He peered in, looking for something. Pulling out a carton of eggs, he checked the amount in the carton.  _ Six.  _ “Do eggs sound good?” he asked Kevin. 

“Yeah!” Kevin had forgotten that Chanhee enjoyed cooking. He put the cereal back and smiled at Chanhee, looking into the cabinets, trying to find a pan to cook the eggs in. Kevin opened one for him, taking out a skillet he figured would work, “This okay?” 

“Perfect. How do you like your eggs?”

“Sunny-side up!” 

“With toast?” 

“Of course!” 

“We must be soulmates,” Chanhee joked, but Kevin’s heart skipped a beat. The moment was so surreal that he only wanted to bask in its reality. If he dwelled on the fact that everything was _truly happening,_ he was going to miss what _was_ _happening_. Somewhere deep (or not very deep) in his heart, he hoped that _more_ than just a friendship was blossoming, but he knew that so much negative could come from Chanhee even _casually_ spending time with a fan. 

“Do you want to get the toast ready?” Chanhee asked Kevin, who was already fumbling with a bread tie thanks to his cast. “Ah,” Chanhee giggled, “Let me get that.” Taking the loaf of break from his hands, he untied it and handed it back to Kevin. “There you go!” Chanhee went back to the oven. Spreading butter from the fridge across the heated up pan, Chanhee cracked two eggs into the skillet.

Kevin plugged the toaster in and put some bread into it. “How do you like your toast?” he asked. 

Chanhee seemed to think for a minute before deciding, “Brown and toasted, but not very black. Crunchy, but not so much so that is disintegrates when I pick it up, you know?” Kevin looked at him, smiling but shaking his head, too. 

“I understand, I think. Just tell me when to put it down.” 

Chanhee continued cooking, cracking two more eggs into the skillet while the other two finished browning. “You can now,” Chanhee announced. Kevin got out two plates for them and set it next to the toaster so he could easily put the toast on them when finished. 

“Do you want anything to drink?” Kevin had never realized how many questions could be associated with making breakfast. 

“Sure, what do you have?” 

“Milk, water, lemonade, coke…?” Kevin listed. 

“Lemonade is fine,” Chanhee decided. 

When Kevin pulled out the pitcher, the toast popped. Setting it down on the counter by the fridge he pulled the toast out and put the plates by Chanhee. Standing next to Chanhee, he reached up, still using his non dominant hand, to retrieve two glasses. He placed both on the counter before picking them up again (so he could readjust how he was holding them). 

He poured everything, a bit shakily but successfully, before he realized he wouldn’t be able to carry the glasses while full. “Chanhee?” 

“Yes?” he could see that the boy was plating the eggs. 

“Can you carry the a glass too? I can’t hold both…” he trailed off, a little embarrassed. 

“Of course!” Chanhee cheered. “I gave you my phone number in case you needed help, I told you. Why would I mind helping now that I am here?” Kevin didn’t know the answer, either, so he took it as rhetorical. He continued to carry his glass and two forks to the table where Chanhee then arrived with his plate before going back to get his glass and plate. 

When the two were finally sat down and ready to eat, Kevin thanked Chanhee for making the food. “It was no problem!” Chanhee replied. He was  _ so  _ cute, even without his makeup on or while he wasn’t all dressed up. Kevin figured it would be pushing it to say he  _ loved  _ Chanhee, but he felt  _ something _ , even if he couldn’t name it. 

They continued eating, making small talk that didn’t mean much to either of them. Kevin asked things about Chanhee’s up and coming drama, but most of his replies had nothing to do with the plot or script, only that he couldn’t reveal much except for what  _ kind  _ of character he was playing (who turned out to suit him well). Kevin found out cute things about Chanhee that he would have never known without having the chance to meet him, like that Chanhee loved mathematics and may have gone to school for math or communications if he had the chance. 

Chanhee learned things about Kevin, too. He was a good singer and pianist and could write songs, but he has never tried to become a singer. He found out that Kevin was in college and studied fine arts and psychology, but wasn’t enjoying being in college. Chanhee learned why and how Kevin had gotten into him and even how Jacob did, which was essential to knowing why Kevin did. Kevin didn’t  _ mean  _ to mention that he has had a crush on Chanhee for years, but it  _ may  _ have slipped out in his explanation. It didn’t matter though, their discussion was too fast paced for Chanhee to grow flustered before they continued. 

Kevin stood, taking his plate to the sink, which he hadn’t thought about until now. There was no dishwasher in the house, so Kevin had to do it by  _ hand,  _ but that seemed to be an issue. Chanhee walked over, the rest of the dishes in his hands, and he caught his staring. “Oh,” everything clicked. “I can do the dishes for you!” 

“You don’t have to,” Kevin felt guilty. He didn’t want to make Chanhee do so many things for him just because of his stupid wrist. 

“It is okay! Like I said before, I want to  _ help!”  _

Kevin bit his lip before accepting, “Okay…” 

 

After the dishes were finished, Kevin and Chanhee were back on the open bed, where they sat rather close, and Kevin  _ wasn’t  _ the reason they did. Surprisingly, Chanhee chose to scoot so close to him. They were watching what was on TV. Chanhee insisted on staying for as long as he could since Kevin was  _ clearly  _ have trouble. 

Suddenly, the same ringing from the morning erupted from next to Chanhee. He picked it up, responding kindly, more clearly than he did earlier. “Really?” Kevin  _ knew  _ he couldn’t get  _ this  _ lucky. “Why?...Okay...Sure…” Chanhee grew more sarcastic and more annoyed as the call went on. “Thank you…” he finished, hanging up. “I have to go…” Chanhee was sad, not annoyed that he was leaving. “I will see you again, though, I promise.” With that, Chanhee had gotten up and left. He left Kevin sitting on his makeshift bed alone. Tears weren’t necessarily the weight that pulled on Kevin’s throat, but something more like hopelessness. He can’t believe he didn’t say anything. He has never felt this way about a person in his life, and he  _ didn’t say anything.  _

 

✈️

 

The rest of the day, Chanhee hadn’t called him or texted him. He didn’t the next day, either. It was the late in the night, and it had only been a day since he had seen Chanhee but it felt like years. He considered texting or calling him, but if he was busy that was probably a bad idea. 

He tried to focus on other tasks like ways to do the dishes, sorting laundry, and even just watching TV, but he was so restless and eager just to  _ see  _ Chanhee again. Kevin was finally able to figure it out, too. What he felt for Chanhee was nothing he had felt before because his heart had never grown in size nor crescendoed so quickly before. He had never crashed-landed on the idea of  _ being in love  _ like it was his hometown that he was the first to colonize. He shouldn’t have to breathe in lungfuls of air like it was his first breath; he should breathe easy, but his breath catches around Chanhee.

But it didn’t matter how many times he went over  _ why  _ he was  _ in love  _ with Chanhee. It only mattered that he had checked his phone too many times to count today and not once did he have a message of any sort from the boy. 

Kevin was watching TV when his phone finally rang from right next to him. He had finally finished separating his laundry into whites, colors, and darks and was getting to sit down again. He didn’t know what about having only one arm made things harder and seemed to make him tired faster, but it did seem to be that way. “Hello?” he picked up without checking who it was. Pulling the phone away from him, the caller ID read: Jacob.  _ Oh.  _

“Hello! I was going to let you know last night that we had arrived, but it took me a minute to realize what time it would have been for you… How are you?” Jacob’s usually cheerful voice chorused across the line in the same way it always did. Kevin was thankful to have a friend like Jacob, for sure. 

Kevin thought for a minute. It would be too much to tell Jacob at once how he was feeling, so he figured he would keep it simple. “I am a little sore, to be honest,” Kevin danced around the elephant in the room, “I have been having trouble with things like cooking and cleaning, but I am fine altogether…” he trailed off, not wanting to say more. 

“That is good! I am glad you are doing okay! If there is anything you need that Sangyeon or I can help you with, don’t hesitate to ask… We are here for you even if we aren’t  _ there  _ for you…” he laughed at his own joke, and Kevin joined. 

“I won’t, thank you! Tell Sangyeon-hyung I said ‘Hi,’” Kevin finished. He could hear in Jacob’s voice that they were at least somewhat busy or maybe it was early… Kevin didn’t really want to check. 

“I will. Bye! I hope you enjoy your time in Seoul! Don’t forget to leave the house and have a little fun, Kevin!” Jacob sang before he hung up the call. Kevin smiled into his phone, putting it back down. He and Jacob both knew that Kevin  _ wasn’t  _ going to have as much fun as he wants to, but that is fine. Really, Kevin just wants to spend time with one person, but all they can do is stay cooped up inside this little apartment so they can avoid any scandals. 

It was almost 10:30 PM in Seoul, so, from his best estimate it was about 8:30 or 9:30 where Jacob was. Kevin wasn’t mad, he probably wasn’t going to sleep well tonight anyway. He thought again about calling Chanhee, but he really shouldn’t. He should be okay without him at least this once. It isn’t like Kevin  _ needs  _ Chanhee to feel happiness. He just  _ needs to know  _ if he will ever see Chanhee again. He  _ wants  _ to see him again. He wants to hold his hand and hug him and kiss him and do things with him that people  _ get to do with the people they love.  _

Kevin also wants to get to sleep tonight. He laid down on his bed, his phone on the side of him. He made sure to not stay on his phone, so he could actually fall asleep. Kevin had managed to doze off before he heard a loud  _ KNOCK  _ at the door. His heart was nearly jumping out of his chest with fear. Checking his phone, it was 11:48 PM.  _ This late and someone is here? No way.  _

While checking his phone, though, he noticed a message. Sent at 10:51, Chanhee told him he will be there in about an hour, and he is sorry if Kevin was trying to sleep. Kevin tried to rub the sleep from his eyes as he sat up and made his way to the door. He  _ looked  _ like he had been sleeping, but that didn’t matter, apparently. 

When he was standing at the door, he noticed a  _ tap tap tap tap  _ sound against the roof. It wasn’t super heavy, but it was raining outside. Quickly, he let Chanhee in. He was wearing clothes similar to what he was wearing before, but they were soaked with rainwater. His hat was soaked through, too, making his blonde hair wet and stringy, like he had just gotten out of the shower. 

“Chanhee… I am sorry, I was laying down, I didn’t see…” Kevin trailed off when Chanhee lifted up a small bag in his hands. It was wet, too, but Kevin guessed that its contents weren’t if he was proudly showing them off. 

“I figured you’d be asleep, but I didn’t think that this cake would take  _ that long  _ to make...but it did,” Chanhee smiled, making his way to the kitchen on his own, as if this apartment was his, too. Kevin followed suit, though, finding himself in the kitchen, where Chanhee was placing a large tupperware container on the table. Kevin could see a cake from the inside of it, but he couldn’t see much detail in it. 

“You...you didn’t have to make me a cake,” Kevin cleared his throat, still tired. 

“I didn’t make  _ you  _ a cake. I made a cake, and I wanted to bring it here because I will feel bad if I eat the whole thing myself,” he told Kevin matter-of-factly. 

Kevin nodded in realization, “Okay,” he moved to get a knife from the drawer. When he did, he turned back to look at Chanhee, knife pointed down toward him, “But you made me a cake.” 

“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Chanhee gave up. 

“Clearly not this cake…” Kevin joked after handing the knife to Chanhee and going to get plates. 

Chanhee laughed, cutting the cake and putting the pieces on the plates Kevin layed out. “You know,” he began, “I am sorry for coming so late. I was going to message you, but I kept getting distracted and then I had an extra scene to film and… It was just a mess…” 

Kevin nodded, “I understand,” he said because he did. He understood that Chanhee was busy and the  _ last  _ thing Chanhee should have to worry about is some boy with a broken wrist when he could be doing  _ anything  _ else. 

“You know,” Chanhee said once they were sat down and had started eating, “I have been wanting to tell you something. I was never sure how to tell you but…” he paused again, thinking. Kevin had noticed it was casual for Chanhee to stop and think about what he was saying. He wasn’t sure why he did it, either. For sure, Kevin wasn’t used to thinking before he spoke unless he was trying to say something  _ actually intelligent.  _

Kevin could feel his heart break its way through his ribcage with the way it was beating. It was scary, what Chanhee could do to his heart and the way it beats. “Go on,” he aided, trying to signal to Chanhee that it was  _ okay.  _ Kevin didn’t know what Chanhee could say that he would get upset about, within reason, of course. 

“I just…” Chanhee took his arms off the table and put them in his lap. He leaned back in his chair while he looked down. Meanwhile Kevin searched his face for  _ something,  _ some hint of what he was trying to say. “You make me really, really happy, Kevin,” Chanhee finally spoke up, only looking up at Kevin to acknowledge him. “You give me hope and make me want to keep up what I do, and it isn’t only that, but there is something about you that I have been missing in my life.” Kevin wasn’t one to cry, but he could have sworn that he was about to start. His throat seemed to swell and he could feel his face turn red as he watched Chanhee’s do the same. 

“You are beautiful, Kevin, and I don’t mean  _ just  _ how you look. You are amazing, and I’ve never felt like  _ this  _ over someone, but I want to feel it all the time, with you,” Kevin noticed that Chanhee started to tear up. With two pieces of chocolate cake between them, Kevin wanted to just get up and hug the boy. There was  _ nothing  _ stopping him, yet he was frozen.  _ Was this okay?  _ “I think I  _ really  _ like you,” Chanhee finished, letting out a sob at the end.  _ This had to be okay.  _

“Why are you crying?” is all Kevin could think to ask, even though tears threatened his eyes at the same time. 

“You are too!” Chanhee pointed an accusing finger at him as he laughed and wiped away the tears that were staining his cheeks. Kevin wasn’t crying nearly as much as Chanhee. Tears did threaten his eyes, though, but he didn’t plan on letting any spill from where they pooled and burnt his eyes. 

Kevin wondered what more he could say to comfort Chanhee, but he wasn’t sure. There were so many reasons that Chanhee could be crying. He wanted to understand  _ why  _ Chanhee was so stressed about telling Kevin what he had. Kevin could understand a number of them, but there  _ had  _ to be at least one that stood out to Chanhee himself. “I’m not crying like that,” Kevin laughed, blinking away his tears. “I am crying because you are, and I want to know why you are!” he tried to subtly ask again. 

“I don’t want you to leave! I don’t want to not be able to see you everyday!” Chanhee suddenly blurted out. More tears welled in his eyes before quickly spilling over his cheeks, “And I know it is selfish, but I think I…and…” he was crying too hard to make coherent sentences. Now, Kevin  _ did  _ get up and walk over to him. With his good hand, he stood him up and hugged him, Chanhee’s face burying itself in between Kevin’s shoulder and neck. 

Standing like this, they stood there for a minute. Kevin tried to console him with little things words like “It’s okay,” and “I like you, too.” Kevin rubbed his back, his hair, anything to calm the boy down. Kevin  _ didn’t  _ want to be a stresser on anyone. After a minute, Kevin looked him in the eye, wanting to say something more than what he had. “I  _ do  _ like you, and I  _ do  _ have to go home, but Chanhee...if you think I wouldn’t come back for you, you are wrong,” he explained with a smile. Kevin lifted a hand to wipe the tears from Chanhee’s cheeks, “Let's stop crying tonight, yeah?” 

“Yeah,” Chanhee nodded, sitting back down as Kevin did the same. 

 

✈️

 

Two large suitcases sat in front of Kevin, and only some of his clothes were in them. Both of his hands were usable now, and it had been two weeks since he had  _ seen  _ Chanhee, but only about five minutes since his last call with him. Kevin had to admit, he didn’t expect to ever be in a long-distance relationship with a celebrity, but there was something about this that he was extremely happy with. Maybe it was the fact that everyday he got closer to going back to Chanhee, he knew he would get to see the person he was convinced that he was in love with sooner. 

Now that his phone call had ended, he continued to pack more things into his suitcases. He had so much to take since he was pretty much  _ moving  _ to Korea. It was a big decision, but he decided that he would be able to study in Korea next school year. Besides, when was he going to have this opportunity  _ again?  _ If Chanhee moved on, there was no more seeing him, no more being with him, no more getting to know him, cuddling with him, talking to him, cooking with him...no more anything. It would just be Kevin. And it would just be Chanhee. They  _ wouldn’t be  _ connected. 

Right now, their only connection was through phone and facetime. This was fine, but this wasn’t how either of them wanted it to always be. Because of this, Kevin continued to put things in the bags laying in front of him, packing away everything he loved, everything he needed. He would be in Seoul again in only three days, and he experienced many emotions knowing this, but mostly happiness. He was eager to see Jacob and Sangyeon again. He was eager to learn about schooling and take Korean lessons. He wanted to walk the streets once more, maybe with the boy he wanted to call his boyfriend. 

 

✈️

 

Getting off the plane, he went through all the necessary processes of getting his things, checking with anyone necessary, and moving through long lines and metal detectors. With his bags in hand, he left, finally ready to leave when he noticed a sign raised high with Kevin’s name on it in bright colors. A smiling boy was holding it, next to him was a boy seemingly smiling  _ even wider  _ than the first. He had to admit, he did expect to see Chanhee, but Sangyeon’s nor Jacob’s smiling faces were disappointing. 

“ _ JACOOOB!”  _ Kevin cheered like he was  _ actually  _ cool. When he made it to the two boys, they lowered the sign and turned to keep walking. There was only  _ a little  _ bit more to do in order to finally leave, but once it was done, Kevin was happily making his way home. 

In the car, Kevin asked, “Why didn’t Chanhee come…?” He had been talking to Chanhee about coming for so long that he figured it would be Chanhee coming to greet him, but he understood if he didn’t want to come for publicity reasons. 

“You’ll see,” was the only response he was given, though. 

When he made it to Chanhee’s house, which Kevin also thought was odd since he had never been to Chanhee’s place, the two got out of the car and helped Kevin with his suitcases. “Do I need to bring them in?” The couple continued to help, not really giving him any sort of explanation but moving his things nonetheless. 

Chanhee’s house wasn’t  _ huge,  _ but it was huge. When you walked it, you were greeted with a foyer which, oddly enough, had streamers and balloons on the ceiling. Once you were out of the foyer, the entryway, which Kevin assumed led to the living room, had a banner hanging on it. It was simple, but read “Welcome Home!” across in big, bold letters. It took Kevin another second to realize what was happening before it hit like a train. “For real?” Kevin asked, and he could see Chanhee walking from the living room to greet him. 

“Mhm,” Jacob hummed his reassurance.  _ No way. _

“Am I...am I actually  _ allowed?”  _ disbelief flooded Kevin’s head. It didn’t make any sense. How would Chanhee not get caught with him? Did anyone other than these three know? Is Chanhee or him or both of them going to suffer because of this?

Chanhee smiled before answering. It was the warmest smile Kevin had seen him offer, he seemed comfortable, seemed thankful, “Of course! I talked to my managers… I did tell them that you were  _ just  _ a friend and that you needed a place to stay. I also….maybe….just kind....told them that you’d be okay if you were filmed once in a blue moon?” he finished like he’s unsure of what he had said. Kevin knows why he was worried about his response, but he shouldn’t have been. 

“Chanhee,” Kevin paused, making full eye contact with his not-boyfriend, “If I can be with you, they can film me  _ anytime. _ ” When Kevin finished speaking, there was a second or two of silence before a collective “Yes!” was cheered in the room. 

“What? Why are we cheering?” 

“That was the only thing Chanhee thought you would be worried about,” Sangyeon explained and Kevin smiled. He couldn’t believe it. He wasn’t just in Korea for the boy he liked, he was  _ living  _ in Korea with the boy  _ he loved.  _

In some strange, unannounced moment of bravery, Kevin moved to pull Chanhee towards him, locking their lips like he planned to keep them safe forever. They collided in sparks and it was sweet, pressing against someone he loved and feeling them press back. It might have been sloppy and poorly executed and a little unsure, but Kevin  _ had to,  _ he  _ wanted to _ . “I love you,” he whispered just loud enough that certainly Chanhee would hear over their heartbeats and maybe even Jacob and Sangyeon, too, but Kevin didn’t care; he didn’t care because Chanhee said it back, and the world didn’t just  _ spin  _ anymore, it had to stop to catch up with everything the two felt between each other, everything they  _ would feel.  _ Right now, the two were ethereal, no word could capture what they felt, no idea could parallel what they  _ were. _

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope everyone enjoyed! Kudos/comments aren't required by any means but are always appreciated!


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